Reading aside from articles and books

A place for all to share those reading related features that don't fit into existing categories. It's an exciting world out there, and without lockdown I might never have discovered it...

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Timothée Chalamet/Armie Hammer
Characters:
Timothée ChalametArmie HammerElizabeth Chambers
Additional Tags:
the morning afterSmutFeelsRimmingAnal FingeringBlow JobsFuckingAnal SexHand JobsKissingSweaty ArmieI Can't Believe I Wrote ThisElizabeth is just a side character

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I've been enjoying the series featuring Timothee as a seductive mermaid, and of him as the father of a strippers child, but no new chapters have been added to those as of now.

I've had my red pen out this afternoon. A 2,000 word essay about favelas my son has done for his Geography class has gone back to him for serious editing before he sends it off. Sources older than two/three years can only be from seminal texts, and this must be clarified in a way that fits the flow of the work as a whole. I've given him a copy of one of my old essays, on Hungarian irredentism, to see what a perfectly constructed 8,000 words of fact and argument drawing to an inexorable and tightly locked down conclusion - ending with the title question itself arranged as statement or otherwise, should look like.

Hopefully next time, he'll also take my advice that introductions shouldn't be done first because it just boxes you in.

The international response to the Nigerian Crisis of 1966-1970, with a particular emphasis on Warsaw Pact countries, whether they are uniquely placed to understand or apt to misuse the struggle for liberation among colonial populations, and to what extent divergence of policy was evident within those countries?

He can have that one too. I'll hold a discussion hour on it tomorrow.

To what extent, if at all, can Japanese social etiquette account for its apparent comfort with a postwar consensus that ensures its lack of hard power projection and what, if any, strategies has the country developed in place of what might be typically expected of such a major player in the global economy?

He can have that one too. Lots of exciting things for us to discuss.

That all went quite well. The resulting redraft is much improved. Before reading it to me from the finished copy, I had him stand in front of the full length mirror and read it aloud to himself as a speech, to iron out any missing words or phrases that don't make sense, bad timing of delivery, ensure each paragraph flows directly into the next with a natural link, and to deepen a sense of ownership and responsibility over the words about to be taking up someone else's time.

I think for 2,000 words you can take off 200 for the intro, 300 for the conclusion, and another 200 or so for reference related intrusion into the text - find those who agree with you after you've basically finished, throw in one or two who disagree and say why they're wrong. That leaves just 1,300 or thereabouts which is only enough to fully examine your top two things of overwhelming interest, while also passing through another couple of relevant concepts to show you know there's more. Leading to an explicit, original, and final answer to the set question. Nothing to be intimidated by.

That's how I always did these things, and I never had half the problems other people seem to report. I aim to get him to get to a point where 2,000-3,000 words can be done in the pub after lunch, while enjoying a couple of glasses of wine throughout the afternoon. Make it as enjoyable as possible - a bleak struggle shows on paper. Read out now and then to a friend doing the same thing, read aloud in full again at home, correct mistakes in communal computer room, print, dash to time stamp/submit before close of office, go out at night all finished - always worked for me.

I received the very best advice on essays and exams from a teacher who had her classroom walls plastered in Cliff Richard posters. She said just breathe, and enjoy it - you're only writing what you know about so that can be enjoyable, and if you don't know anything, it's a bit late to worry now so relax - the shock of turning the paper over and seeing an impossible task is as bad as it gets. Relax, breathe, take a few minutes with your eyes closed, muse, write - anything, you can score it out. Force what you know to fit the question - if it's tenuous, it's too late now. If it's really worse than tenuous, you're basically scrounging for points for your brass neck, so enjoy the opportunity to just go all out.

I was amazed when I began to discover most people operate in a more complicated way, worrying themselves sick, desperately trying to collect and understand multiple sources before they begin to write, begging extensions due to panic related writers block. All for a B, if they're very lucky. Intimidation always produces a worse outcome. As he's now in the upper section, it's time to take that on board. My aim since March is to send him back to school having had a diversity of learning, reading, input, reflection, discussion. Unlike many children in this country, he's lucky to live in a house with countless books on all kinds of subjects, and has been actively encouraged to build a collection of his own.